New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1887-09-17
WAGNERs SYMPHONY.
H0w III VAS RECoVERBD.
THE COMPOSERS DELiGHT IN HIS YOUTH.
FIJI WORKS-HERR SEIULIS STORY

FUL WORKS-HERR SEIDDs STORY.
| TO the Editor Of The Trfbnne
| SIR: 1 Willingly comfy with your request to ten
! tho readrrs OF TIE TRIBUNE what know about tho
| symphony by Richard Wagner In his later yean
Wagner often recalled the works of his youth win
| much Measure. He brought out many things which
he had not thought OF for nearly fifty years; for I'm
stance, had to copy several soDafas for Iianoforta
that had become almost fiegbIe, and these
| then performed evenings at home More and more Of
such youthful composition Occurred to him, but much
| slipped his memory entirely. This was In 1S17'7s.
Several airs which he had composed for Introduction
In operas which he had either rehcarse conduct
while Capeflmester In wurzburg and Magdcburg were
also discovered In the year 1873, on the ed Of
May, HIS birthday, he was SURPRISED by performance
In the old Bayreuh Opera House mot the Festival thea
tre which at that time not yet built; the concert
had been secretly arranged the tho WHOLE
was brilliant. On this occasion performed
grand overture In major from the year 1ojs, which
at about the time Of Its composition was played at
tho Gewsndhaus In Lepsic with great applause, and
which showed the eighfeenyesroid composer In tic
light VI admirable contrapuntlst Tho overture
consistA after o short, energetic Introduction. OF
single great guc for full orchestra; his facility and
frmness in handling the fugue form were already
recognized at that early day. They were the fruits
OF his studies With the Thomas Cantor Welnig to
whom he afterward gratefully Inscribed the "Liebcs-
mahl der ApOsteL" The second number on the pro-
gramme a grand cantata for orchestra and mixed
chorus which he composed and produced In public
while he was CapcIlmeister I'm Magdeburs. This
composition Is more In Beethoyens style aud reminds
one OF tho Ninth symphony or the Choral Fantaia.
For the conclusion tho comedy "The Massacre OF tho
Innocents at Bethlehem" played, piece from
the zen Of vagners stepfather tho painter and
actor Richard Geycr. Naturally this comedy gave, :.
great pleasure to Wagner. for al his sxtieh year II
awakened q multitude of childhood recoilections
HUNTING LOST SYMPHONY
Besides the compositions mentioned recall two
overures, "Polonian and BRITANNIA" both charac-
tcrized by their tites But he was continually
| curing to symphony which he had lost sight OF
alter performance In Leipsic a Of tho
Euterpe and one performance In wurzburg. In tho
latter place 1t that the trombone parts lost
Letters were written In all directions TO all hts friends
and acquaintance but trace Vt the symphony
found Then be requested the ntterateur Taprer.
Of Berlin, jealous ana lucky collector and discogersr
OF Wagnerfan relics, to make journeys wherever he
thought It Advisable In the interest Of the symphony.
| Tappert, after many inquiries and much reelection.
drafted Plan oi discovery, following lines suggested
Dy the biography Of the MASTER and set out upon tour
through Wurzburg, Magcsbmg, LeiIsic, Prague and
finally Dressen In each place he ransackcd all tho
dwellings, inns theatres and concertrooms In which
Wagner had lived laborcd; all in vain AT last In
Dresden he visited Tiehatschea, the famous tenor.
who at this time vas already bedrdden. He knew
all houses In which Wagner had lived while no
Hof-CapeIlmeister: but nothing to DO found In
!
at tho mach questioning to which be was subjected
AMI TapLert had to Berlin Before doing
So however he requested Furstenau, tho nautist to
crosslueston 1iehatschek thoroughly some day when
he was in good humOr concerning the possible
whereabouts OF trunks which Wagner had lefs
behind him In Dresden, for Wagner hal once said that
when he fed be left all his possessions
and did not know what had become OF them.
| Tho scheme was successful Tichatschek remem-
bered that in his attic there We're several old
| TRUNKS belonging to he cid not know whom. Fur
stcnau looked through them, but down
and declared that though musical manuscripts wec
| In tho attic they only UNKNOWN larts and thai
mono boro Wagnor's handwriting
Taplcrt called for the parts to be sent to Berlin
for his inspection. He recognized at glance that
they hot in his handwriting, but ON carefully
examining the separate sheets he found memoranda
I'm lead lenciI which lac thought looked like youth
| full handwriting of Wagner. To assure himself he
copied the theme the first yiolin part and
forTs In a rooin adjoining that in which wagner, sus
pecting nothing, sat at breakfast The maspr lis
ioyiuIIy shouting that IL was the theme OF tho sym
| phony for which he was hunting. The discovery WAS
| 1 was caIHd upon to a out them. This
somewhat diiicuir tash, but soon the SYMPHONY
| study Ut it was begun
TROMBONE PARTS STILL MISSING.
In the last movement however, the trombone parts
were missing. L saw at once that 1t was a fusato,
and that the trombone parts must be peculiarly es
sentiai, for each trombone entered at different
meut and moved independently Of It's two colleagues
This was evident from the cues In tho other Parts
which contained here and there q trombone rote as
| Q and nothing more 1 told the master taat
would no< undertake my own responsibility to re-
sons.rucs tho trombone parts, for could not guar
Ansee the original treatment Of the voices;
! Il would ouly DO q matter Of chance
sSou afrsr this 1 ieat wssners house, and ster .
| probationary year the isO, al OperA vienna ~
~Gssais ,ssrresiissr" wnscn Position @asnet LIN
| agaia On Wagner RECOMMENDATION the Lf.sse
ssA-ItheAre Capeiinsasler. Taeno, l went To TO
Bersln VICTORIA Tneaxxc commissioned w direct lao
! reisearsAis AID Iss1ornanAes ior I've cnl.re Noc
lunsen" cycle Tvs Was in iesi Waener CANE 70
Berila VIA his eudre iauiiy and atended the nrss
ANN fourth performances Of tue tetraoS the er
thusa-n and tho unamkh oi the w"rA "eie ihiuo.ss'
II. conversation which had villa Linn IN tle ho.s',
Watplef tVd thai no reyoico1 that no haa oobi
10 had foun tic ses ior the coadaes Of AID
had then sastly aaded what missing. he WAS
and thought the mos, hitting occasion would DC cele
Dration OF tho hiteth ami 'ersary Of the beginning 81
| native city, Lipsic. lie asked a.sist him az
tho early rehearsais. OF course was delighted with
! tho Iian.
THE FIRST PERFORMANCES OF " PARsIFAL."
But iate had other things in store In 1882 90
crN the first performance Of "Parsifai, and Wagner
sought alter tho excessive eAertion winch thss
caused In Venice ] was travelling With the Achaia
Wagner Theatre, conducting the "Mbeungen" was
ner was greatly Interested In this tremendous enter
prise which certainly contributed great deal toward
extending acquaintance with bis gigantic creAivn
and stimulated many OF the smaller theatres 10 perform
| H. He encouraged the director and artists in MANY
letters to continue In the good work The Institution
had again reached Berlin when received letter ask
ing me- to come Venice for the apr. aching Christ
mas festivities In orr to aid the master In rehearsns
the symphony which he wished to perform Ia honor
OF tho birthday OF MS vile Cosima- he feared ths
eNertons wllch tho first reheasais would cost anu
| wrute 90 me: .'lou must hep me aSaa, ~ gd .
! niriorgh and como hero tho orchestra Of the Coi
segyatory been placed al my dslosa and sAas
II play tho sy phons at the birthday celebration "
| my Coama the second Christmas DAY, VIZ